Banner by Jan Neal, ECVA Exhibitions Director Episcopal Church and Visual Arts is putting out a call for artists' submissions on the theme of the Light of the World or Lux Mundi, for us Latinists, as we approach the season expressing for that which is longed for, Advent. The deadline is November 1st. Go to the ECVA website for submission details. Previous exhibitions are online also.

Stressed out? CCDP is offering an evening with Dr. Helen Rosemary Meier, Staff Psychiatrist at the St. Joseph's Health Centre, on Wednesday October 29th from 7-9pm. She will discuss life transitions and relationship changes, including 'acceptance through understanding ' as a means to contributing to resilience. Refreshments will follow. Then, once you've put your new skills into practice for a few days, go to Jazz Vespers on Sunday November 2nd at 4:30. This week features the Mark Eisenman Trio: Mark on piano, John Sumner on drums and Steve Wallace on bass.

The 33rd Annual Book Sale at Trinity College, UofTis coming up Friday October 24th to Tuesday October 28th (ck site for various hours and when admission is charged). 6 Hoskin Ave. 46 978.6750. A great event for those of us who are thin. Read: it's extremely crowded. However, you can get a year's worth of reading for under $50. If anyone sees a Lewis and Short Latin Dictionary (about 6 inches thick, regular retail price $400+) please save it for me!!!! I've been going to this sale for 10 years trying to get a used one. Fun times, fun times.

Zach enters his school cafeteria hungry, but quickly finds out that today is not just another day at school.Get Stuffed is a comic opera about serious decisions. The production features vocalizing vegetables along with a big helping of other opinionated edible characters, all competing to influence Zach’s daily diet. A new Canadian opera for young audiences, Get Stuffed is co-produced by Tapestry and Words in Motion, and has been developed in association with The Canadian Diabetes Association. After preview performances in the GTA in fall 2008, the opera will tour Ontario beginning spring 2009. This new work focuses on encouraging youth to make wholesome dietary choices. Written for 5 singing actors and 2 musicians, Get Stuffed is intended for family audiences and touring to schools. Set in the school cafeteria, Get Stuffed promotes environmentally-friendly, healthy food choices inspired by the Canada Food Guide, with special prominence for fruits and vegetables grown in Ontario. The …

Co-sponsored by Imago, TST is hosting Till We Have Faces: Art & Theology in Dialogue An Exploration of the Human Countenance and the Sacred. Exhibition hours are October 27 to November 14th, Mon-Fri 9-5pm at the Toronto School of Theology, 47 Queen's Park Cres. E, with an opening reception on Nov 4th from 4 to 6pm. There is a panel discussion, The Face in Art, Theology and Science on that evening from 6:30-8pm at St. Mike's; then next day there is a public lecture, Till We Have Faces: The Human Face in the History of Western Art also at St. Mike's.

No, I haven't become computer illiterate overnight, and yes, I know my Facebook link and pages have a blank photo--that's intentional. It is part of a Facebook movement to remove our faces as symbols of an oft-neglected/ignored artistic community in Canada. We return to self-promotion after the election! If you want to do the same, join the group Faceless for the arts and support our point.

A very eclectic and original sounding cd, In Last Night's Party Clothes, belongs to The Roaring Girl Cabaret, a cool group of musicians who have put together a debut album, although their experience is not new and it shines through. The interesting thing about this cd is that it has something for everyone, as they say; there are so many music influences in it that everyone is bound to find something to their taste on it (if not everything), and it's many elements makes the whole self-propelling. I keep playing it, trying to nail it down to a particular description, but perhaps my inability to isolate or pigeon-hole it is indicative of its charm. If I am sounding annoyingly vague, it's my fault, not the Roaring Girls'. If you're looking for something creative and freeing, check out this beaut. If I find a word or phrase worthy of ascription to the cd, I'll let you know.

Yes, it's not too early to start your Christmas shopping--then you can enjoy Advent instead of rushing around like a mad fool. Two cds which I recommend, from the Dorian Sono Luminus label, are Sweet Desire, 17th century sonatas from Chatham Baroque, and Fire Beneath My Fingers, featuring lots of Vivaldi and some of his contemporaries, by Musica Pacifica Baroque Ensemble. Gorgeous stuff to enjoy as you go to sleep or upright!

The winners of the 2008 Toronto Arts Council Foundation Awards will be announced Friday October 17th at the mayor's Arts Awards Lunch downtown. Nominees include the organization SKETCH (art programming for street youth), David Fallis and Richard Underhill. The Regent Park School of Music choir, with Jackie Richardson, will perform under the direction of Wayne Strongman, artistic director of Tapestry New Opera. You can learn more about these awards at www.torontoarts.org/awards.html.